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Description

Get your embrocation ready.

Upon its unveiling, the Pinarello Dogma Carbon proved to be the most coveted frameset in recent (and not-so-recent) memory. If test riding one made you dizzy with desire, it seemed that simply being near one did the same. Is it the asymmetric tubing design? Is it the scintillating paint? Is it the handling or the Torayca 60HM1K carbon? The answer is "yes" -- it was all of those things in the aggregate. Layered on top of it was the instant palmares of Team Sky and Caisse d'Epargne once the 2010 season kicked off plus the figurative resurrection of the thing that wooed so many of us into bike racing in the first place -- a white-hot love affair with something gorgeous and italiano.

With the introduction of the KOBH, Pinarello takes the amazing form of the Dogma Carbon and re-fashions it for the worst of the Spring Classic pavé. KOBH is pronounced "cob", short for cobblestones. It's no mistake that the bike was launched in the week leading up to the 2010 Paris-Roubaix. The details that distinguish it from the Dogma Carbon are ones that make it better suited for a mud-sodden Belgian apocalypse, and outside of them it's otherwise identical in design, construction, and execution to the Dogma Carbon.

The most visually distinct difference of the KOBH is its seatstays. Instead of the double-S-bend Onda seatstays you've seen in the last few generations of Pinarello carbon frames, here you get flatter, radial curved stays. If they look mildly familiar, it's because they should. This same basic design is what you first saw from Cervélo in their R3, then again in their RS, and once again by Ridley for their best-selling Excalibur. The curvature of the thin-yet-wide stays is made to promote vertical compliance. Pinarello's take on the flat, radial stays, though, are a step beyond: Pinarello calls them AFS, short for "Asymmetrical Frame System" which means that even though they look complete different from the Dogma Carbon's stays, they share one critical commonality: They're asymmetric to maximize the frame's resistance to flex under power.

One other important detail about the seatstays: Unlike the Dogma Carbon (or virtually any other ProTour bike in the marketplace), the KOBH seatstays (and KOBH 60.1 carbon fork) permit the use of 28c tires. Given that the most popular tires at Paris-Roubaix are the Vittoria Pavé Evo in 27mm and the FMB Paris-Roubaix in 27mm, this is something we love about the KOBH.

Just as the stays are engineered to promote compliance, the KOBH's geometry is unlike what you'll find on any other Pinarello. The seat tube and head tube angles are relaxed; the headtube is taller; the chainstays are 0.7cm longer and the fork rake is extended to 48mm on all sizes. The result is a calmer-riding bike and a position where you'll be just a hint higher and further back on the bike, giving you added comfort and stability.

The KOBH's geometry, fork, and rear triangle are distinct from the Dogma Carbon. So what's the same between them? They're both built with the same asymmetrical design principles, and they use the same carbon fiber. Its Torayca 60HM1K carbon is built to withstand 60 tons per square cm, the strongest-ever carbon used by Pinarello. Stronger carbon, of course, allows for the use of less material as a whole, keeping the overall frame weight to a minimum.

The lightness is nice, but since this a bike made for the Classics, what about the durability to withstand the violence of the cobbles? 60HM1K carbon is made using Torayca's Nanoalloy technology. Alloy nano-particles are embedded into the carbon itself. Upon significant impact (read: when you plow into the Euskatel rider who inevitably crashes right in front of you) these particles "explode" -- in other words, they absorb the kinetic energy of impact forces so the carbon itself won't have to. According to Pinarello testing, the net result is that the KOBH is 23% more impact-resistant than previous generations of carbon Pinarello frames.

And like the Dogma Carbon, the KOBH is made by using Polystyrene for the form during the lay up phase. If Polystyrene sounds familiar, it should: It's what your helmet is made out of. According to Pinarello, the use of Polystyrene results in the most consistent wall-thicknesses possible, with less wrinkling or the other types of imperfections that could cause structural weak spots over time.

Given the unique geometry of the Pinarello KOBH, we recommend that you focus on the top tube length in order to determine your ideal frame size. And if you've already test-ridden the right-size Dogma, here's a quick guide:

KOBH

DOGMA

48

46.5, 50

51.5

51.5, 53

54

54, 55

56

56, 57.5

57

57.5

58

59.5

The Pinarello KOBH Road Bike Frame is available in six sizes. It comes standard with a Pinarello KOBH 60.1 full carbon seatpost, a Pinarello threadless headset, and a 31.6mm Pinarello carbon seatpost. It requires the use of an Italian bottom bracket and a 34.9mm front derailleur.

Asymmetric construction for a super-stiff driveside, which ensures high-output performance

Curved rear seatstays help absorb bumps to keep you comfortable and strong all day

Here's what others have to say...

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Hi there, I want to buy this frame in 58cm. Can u please check if you can order this for me through your back end system. I was told by your customer service department that it can be ordered in 58cm. Once ordered, I would like to build this frame as a full bike. Thx!

Have an answer for Uzi?

This is my dream bike

I'm a 65 y/o with knee replacements, bad back & hip & was in need of a more forgiving ride but wanted to increase my mileage. For me a bike fit, specific exercises for my disabilities and the KOBH with Campy Chorus 11 compact has been my dream come true.

I live in S Central TX & ride on a lot of chip stone roads, which are hard on tires & old bodies. I find the KOBH with Conti Gatorskin 25's at 90psi holds the road well, corners nicely, climbs like a dream & is overall the bike I have been looking for. I am partial to Pinarello frames & Campy components so for me this is a perfect combo.

The KOBH frame feels much like the reviews say it will. It absorbs the road shock well & has good clearences for wider tires. I'm not a reviewer or super-roadie, just an old guy who has been riding for awhile and wanted to keep riding. I was looking for a bike that would feel good on harsh roads yet still handle well as I got my legs back under me. This bike has fulfilled that dream for me and I couldn't be happier with my choice.

Have an answer for sharulmizam?

Bicycling Mag Reviews the KOBH

Pinarello: KOBH 60.1

Weight: 16.03 lbs MSRP: $5500 Bicycling Review Issue: Nov 2010 Page: 86 Editorial Review A GENRE-BENDING BIKE FOR ROUGH ROADS It might seem bold for a brand-new pro team to tell its bike sponsor that the menu was inadequate--doubly so when the bike sponsor is Pinarello, the Italian company that has shot to renewed prominence over the past few years with its Paris, Prince and Dogma race machines in everything from magnesium to industry-leading carbon. (And which has a storied past on steel bikes that took, among others, five-time Tour de France winner Miguel Indurain to glory.)

But bold is exactly what the Sky team was last fall, asking the fabled Treviso, Italy, company to design a new bike expressly for the northern Classic races such as the Tour of Flanders and Paris-Roubaix.

The result was the KOBH 60.1 (it's pronounced "cob"), which Pinarello sped from design into production in time for Juan Antonio Flecha to ride to a third in the Queen of the Classics. The bike takes many of its cues from the redesigned-for-2010 Dogma, our Editors' Choice winner for best race bike. There are slight variations: The chainstays are 7mm longer than the Dogma's and, on our 54cm tester, the seat angle is almost half a degree slacker than a comparable Dogma, so you sit slightly farther behind the bottom bracket. In some kind of compromise beyond our comprehension, the fork rake is increased from 43mm to 48 (which would push the front wheel out) but the head angle is steeper (which would pull the front wheel in). The KOBH has the same Toray 60HM1K carbon as the Dogma and shows a similar asymmetrical approach to the tubes: Different layups in the top tube and in the drive- and nondrive-side stays are arranged to resist twisting or flexing under pedaling force. And, also like the Dogma, the frame uses what Pinarello calls Nanoalloy Technology, microscopic carbon fibers added to the carbon and resin mix to help combat the microcracking and fatigue than can plague carbon frames.

Still, the KOBH won't replace the Dogma on most race days. Nor is it plush, in the sense that it emphasizes comfort. It's best to say that it's a bike for a Gran Fondo--long, tiring rides you want to do fast, then be fresh enough afterward to enjoy a limoncello on a sunlit piazza. Or an icy 40 in front of the 7-Eleven.

Andrea Pinarello, younger brother of Pinarello's current director Fausto and organizer of the popular Gran Fondo Pinarello, favors the KOBH as his everyday bike. And it's easy to understand why. Our testers judged it remarkably similar in both fit and ride feel to the pure-racing Dogma and Prince. But the long and low position aside, the KOBH offers all-day comfort. The slightly curved seatstays and fatter tires (it fits up to models as wide as 28mm) ironed out washboard wrinkles and shattered roadbeds even with deepsection carbon wheels, while retaining the kind of spirited ride we love about the Dogma and Prince.

In fact, the KOBH is so close to these bikes that, if you wanted a stablemate for one of them, you might want to choose some other bike that offered a completely different flavor of ride. Unless you're Flecha, the KOBH is no complement. It's the ultimate bike for a performance rider who loves rough roads and all-day rides, ever so slightly more gritty than its purebred brethren.

And all of this raises the question: Is it sacrilege to ride a fine Italian race bike on dirt? Flecha would say no--that it feels just right--and so do we.--Joe Lindsey

After finishing 10th in Paris-Roubaix, Mathew Hayman could look back on a job well done. Watching Mathew on the run in to the famous Roubaix velodrome at the head of a group hammering across cobbled sector 11, it was obvious hed be the perfect person to give a riders eye-view of the Pinarello KOBH 60.1.

Hi Mathew, how many races a year do you ride the KOBH and how much time do you spend in training getting used to the bike?

I raced it for the first time in Scheldeprijs on April 6 after having trained on it the day before. We were given the option to use it in The Tour of Flanders but the cobbles arent as bad and I knew I could test it out in Scheldeprijs to get used to the bike before Roubaix. Were only on the KOBH one week of the year, although some of the guys really liked it and have asked about using it for other races too. In total, Id say I rode the KOBH for 14 hours before I got to Compeigne (the start of Paris-Roubaix).

What are the differences you notice most when changing from your Dogma to the KOBH?

Getting the handlebar setup right takes a little bit of time, but once you get it right you feel extra length of the front end. For me, when you get out of the seat, the bike responds a little differently but you get used to it really easily.

Can you describe what the bike feels like to ride on normal tarmac roads?

The bike floats a bit more I guess, its not quite as stiff in the corners. But that slight flexibility is good for guys who like to corner aggressively because the bike stays planted, when you have carbon everything some bikes get thrown off line because theyre too stiff. The KOBH accelerates really well, I rode with normal wheels in Scheldeprijs and it felt really fast. Ill leave the technical details to the pros, but bikes need to be stiff in the right places, I think the KOBH has the right feel.

Do you feel physical benefits of the increased vibration absorption of the KOBH?

Yeah, we do everything we can to make sure we get a smoother ride for Roubaix. The KOBH feels a lot softer with the extra space it gives us for fatter tyres and the extra length in the frame and fork too. Roubaix is never comfortable, but it is really nice that Pinarello make a special bike to give us the best equipment.

Do you ever ride cobbles on the Dogma and if so can you give an idea of how different it feels compared to the KOBH?

The Dogma is a solid bike, its a good bike for the classics but the biggest difference compared to the KOBH is the handling. If you could fit the larger tyres and traditional wheels etc you could ride the Dogma in Roubaix but the planted feel and extra length of the KOBH really help.

Thanks Mat, for the review. I'm 54 and have been riding Centuries + for a few years now. Currently on a 2008 S-Works Roubaix - great bike but a bit wobbly at high speed. I've been looking at this Kobh for a while as a good platform for both long rides and some compliance. I love climbing and quick descents, but don't like high speed wobble. Does anyone have any experiance with the Kobh going fast downhill? Thanks! Dave, Sacramento, Ca

Honestly, interviews from sponsored riders shouldn't have a rating. First, there's a conflict of interest. Second, the rating wasn't provided by the rider, but from the RC staffer who posted it. Leave the stars for the customers.

Comment on JT's review:

2011 Pinarello KOBH review

I agree with Greg & my 4 time great sales rep Wes B, he makes it smooth & easy knows his stuff. My latest adventure was my 54cm Kobh, just got it with full Dura Ace, Zipp carbon bars & stem, but used Reynolds Assault wheels instead, didn't quite open it up yet but locally, rides like a hi-line performance machine & responsive, I'm also a car guy in retail with hi-end name plate. This bike is the real deal for the money, for me to comment I'm truly touch to view my opinion, its also manufactured in Italy not Taiwan. Thanks again Wes your the Best from Bklyn NY